Moments in Time
by Ephemeral Sonata
Summary: A Collection of short stories based on prompts. Nick/Ellis, Rochelle/OC, Zoey/Francis, M for future chapters.
1. Hey Mister Postman

So, I'm going to try to do a set of prompts for Nick x Ellis. This is the same prompt list that I tried doing for Cloud x Riku in the KH fandom, and really couldn't get it off the ground. So, wish me luck. And remember I do not own this fandom.

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Prompt 1: Mail

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It had been three years. Somehow, CEDA managed to get their shit together and had cleared out the cities. The government kept the citizens safe while keeping the horde at bay. The population was not as sparse as was originally assumed. Entire towns weren't really decimated by the virus, while others were overrun. Out west, Seattle was still mostly in operation, because they managed to get a hold of the situation. Philadelphia and New York City were dead zones. Most people lived in small communities, mostly where the large cities used to be.

Nick and Ellis settled down in a suburb of Savannah. Ellis because it was his home; Nick because he had no home to go to. Rochelle moved back to Ohio, where she picked up a reporting job. The television systems were up and running again. Coach moved out to Seattle, meeting up with his sister-in-law and her daughter. They were the only family, aside from the other three, that he had. Honestly none of them knew why they still called him Coach. His name was Wesley Baker. They had found out when they were being processed at the internm—evacuation camps. They had found out everyone's full names. Rochelle Fiona Everett. Ellis Garrett Devereaux. Wesley Alan Baker. Albert Nicholas Delligatti. That last one got a few chuckles. Nick was less than amused.

They all made it a point to keep in touch. They all cared for each other too much to not do so. E-mails, phone calls, and letters when something special happened. Rochelle sent a postcard when she traveled to Morocco, and she sent a flowery invitation when she got married a year ago. Marques was a good guy, and he traveled with Ro when she had assignments in other states. Coach sent a letter when his niece, Kailey, gave birth to a bouncing baby boy, Derek Thomas.

Speaking of keeping in touch, Ellis got a letter in the mail, shortly after arriving back in Savannah, which nearly sent him into a frantic sprint across town. Nick literally had to knock him (gently) to the floor and sit on him, in order to calm him down.

Ellis had opened it and stopped breathing.

Dear El,

I know you won't believe it, but I'm alive. Me and Dave made it out of Savannah and headed to New Orleans. I heard a few weeks later that a group of four survivors had somehow made it through the bombing run. I had no way of knowing if it was you. I checked on CEDA's survivor registry. I first looked for every Ellis Garrett Devereaux. Then all the ones from Savannah, and I found a couple of addresses. I did a little confirmation. I live back near the old neighborhood. The shop is still in tact. I'll see you soon.

Keith

Ellis grinned up at Nick, who looked supremely unsurprised. When asked, he simply responded with a lightly scathing, and fully joking, comment that any hick who can survive half the shit Keith did would have no problem surviving the zombie apocalypse.


	2. Stop and Stare

I decided to write two of these at once. I figure though Ellis and Nick is the main pairing, I can focus on the others as well. Enjoy.

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Prompt 2: Trance

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The rain was falling hard. Their only mode of transportation had run out of fuel, and Virgil being the wise, albeit mean, person he was, realized that he had three people depending on him, and thus were an expendable resource for his own survival. And that's how they ended up trucking through a deserted town, and a maze-like sugar refinery filled to the top with Witches.

That's how Ellis was where he was. He had accidentally strayed to close to one of the sobbing once-people. Her talons flung outward, she whipped around and sliced a shallow, but deep enough gash across his chest. Nick wrapped him up as well as he could, and carried the man piggy-back to the safe-room. Ellis was sleeping fitfully, using Coach's protruding belly as a pillow. Rochelle was staring out the safe-room door, watching the rain. The lower level of the safe-room was already flooding, an inch or so of grimy water stagnating rapidly. She sat in a folding chair near the door, and just stared out the window, flinching every time a groan was heard, either from the infected outside or from Ellis.

If she was shaken, it was nothing compared to Nick. Nick was pale, drawn up in the corner, and staring at Ellis. He looked positively haunted. He'd seen Ellis nearly die. Rochelle commended the man. He was softening up; beginning to care. She'd had her sneaking suspicions regarding the conman, especially the man's feelings for their resident hick. Those doubts were banished quickly.

Every so often, she'd catch him staring at the boy. It had started way back in Savannah, on top of the hotel. She'd bumped into him, and he threw her a sharp "Sweetheart", God if that didn't seal the deal right there. Nick would conk out, inconspicuously admiring the mechanic's lithe form, and covertly staring at his firm behind. Rochelle could already see that though he was fighting it adamantly, Nick was falling for the charming young man.

It seemed to be reciprocated too. Ellis would stare at Nick at odd times, made seemingly innocuous comments that would send Rochelle into a fit of giggles, and cause Nick to send a withering glare in her direction. Sometimes, it was easy to think he was doing it on purpose, save for the fact that he was born and bred in the Bible Belt. Didn't mean a damn thing, but it hurt Nick's chances. For him, it was likely just going to have to suffice to stare at the boy and long for him. Rochelle shook herself from her reverie and continued to look out the window at the rain in a trance.


	3. Mister Vain

Okay, so I've decided that after I finish the sixty prompts, the first five reviewers to review every chapter with a relevant response (I will decide relevancy), will get to submit a word for a writer's choice prompt. As always, I do not own L4D, or the song titles I use as Chapter titles.

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Prompt 3: Baby

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"Ohh, poor thing." He pet the fabric, trying to smooth it out and remove the stinking bile from it. Nick would be the first to admit it. He was vain. Came with the territory. Gay conman; meticulous about appearance. He liked his hair perfectly coifed, and his suits to be pristine. As of that moment, they were neither. His looks were precious to him, because it was the only thing he had total control over. His profession, by definition was constantly varying. His life had become something of an unknown.

Rochelle bit back, with difficulty, a full-out guffaw. You could almost hear the "Oh, honey" building in the back of her throat. Nick shot her a scathing look and set about trying to find a washcloth to get the bile, mud, blood, and other gunk off of him and his baby.

Ellis and Coach were diving into the rations as though they'd never eaten. Though a day or so without solid food would do that. Rochelle, rolling her eyes and giggling at Nick, shuffled through the ammunition pile trying to find rounds for her combat shotgun, her crowbar bouncing merrily on her hip. Coach's grenade launcher rested against the wall, the grenades half gone.

Nick had locked himself in the cabin's small bathroom, the running water miraculously working. His suit coat and pants were floating in the sink, as he slid into the small shower, and cleaned himself of the caked-on refuse. He ran his hands through his hair, the spray clearing off the clumps of mud. He was in there for about an hour.

When he emerged, he looked human again, causing Rochelle and Ellis to fight comically over who got to use the shower next. He smirked, and after sliding the health kits to one side, parked his freshly cleaned butt on the desk near the door. Coach rolled his eyes and dove back into the soup rations someone had left in the running refrigerator. Who knew they'd find a working safe-house?

Once everyone was cleaned and ready to step foot back out into the swamp, Nick's griping started again with the first fresh drop of blood landing on his once-more-white lapels. Everyone groaned and pressed forward to avoid listening to Nick coo to the damn suit.

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I know these are short, but they don't need to be overly long since I just want to show glimpses. Please review.


	4. Hurt

Okay, starting on my fourth one. I'm stoked. Even though I haven't gotten a review yet, the story alerts and favorites speak for themselves, and it means a lot. It's been a while since I enjoyed writing. Thank you. And as disclaimer, remember: FANfiction.

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Prompt 4: Funeral

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The empty casket lay at the front of the cathedral, filled to overflowing with mementos of loved ones. All of Savannah had showed up, filling the church building to standing room only. Ellis, Keith, and Dave all had found trinkets that had once belonged to their families. Ellis placed his mother's crystal hummingbird into the casket; Keith, his sister's butterfly hair comb; and Dave, his mother's pearl brooch. Nick didn't have anything to put in the casket. He had no one. That wasn't true, he had Ellis, but it wasn't quite the same.

His mother had been a hooker who struggled to support the "household", while his deadbeat father never showed up, except to take money from them, and smack them around. His mother had died from congestive heart failure back in '94. His father…was one of the skeletons in Nick's closet. Fortunately, his mother had never seen the Green Flu. Couldn't say the same for Ellis and his friends.

From what they were saying, Ellis's mother had died from it, mercifully not becoming one of the slobbering mindless freaks that they fought their way through. Their friend, Jeremiah, wasn't as fortunate. The four were headed to the evac center at the mall, and Jeremiah had not been feeling well that day. Next thing they knew, Keith had dived out of the car, rolling and staring in horror as Ellis and Dave followed his suit. The car crashed into the middle barrier and flipped, Jerry's arm hanging out the window.

It was easy to see why Ellis had only mentioned him once. That memory would have been difficult to deal with every time the name came up.

Dave had managed to slip out of the house as his family tore each other apart. Every so often, the man would zone out, his eyes shadowing themselves. It was clear he was reliving that moment. The brunet was constantly beating himself up for leaving his family like that. A fact that Keith adamantly refused to agree with.

Keith. He had it the worst. The man had actually killed his family to save his life. They had all changed, and they were closing in on him fast. Dave told him that he did what he had to do, but Keith still got pissed.

That's why this funeral, officially burying those lost to the flu, was so difficult, because nearly everyone had lost loved ones, sometimes in very violent ways, and often at their own hands. It was, however, the first step in moving past it. So that people like Dave and Keith could begin to forgive themselves for their own perceived betrayals. They'd never forget. Too many had died to forget. But, the pain would eventually recede and that too would be put to rest.

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That was depressing for me. No real reason why. I think it was the Jerry part. Keith killing his family too…I feel blah now.


	5. White Wedding

Sorry this took so long, school's been stupid. After getting The Passing, I knew exactly what to do with this one. Sorry this one is so short.

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Prompt 5: Wedding

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The strains of the wedding march floated down over the hillside, adding to the already eerie atmosphere. Rochelle flicked her dark eyes toward the park, where lights illuminated the walkway. Infected in party clothes milled about. Ellis's breath hitched as he heard the tell-tale moaning of a Witch.

"Guys, there's one of them Witches around." The hick shifted his rifle from one hand to the other nervously. Nick cautiously climbed the stone stairs to a flat landing where plastic chairs were lined up. He could see the Witch, still dressed in her wedding gown, sobbing in front of the altar. Ellis and Rochelle sidled past the prone infected on the left, hurrying their steps when the Witch began to growl. Nick nodded to Coach and tried to squeeze past on the right.

Neither noticed a Charger climbing the hill behind them, a fact made evident when the creature grabbed Nick and ran full tilt past the Witch, startling her. Coach let out a string of colorful curses, jammed his autoshotgun into the suddenly frantic Witch's neck and fired three times. Rochelle dispatched the overalled menace, while Ellis helped the conman to his feet.

As the quartet headed for the safe house, taking out the stray infected in the street, Ellis grinned cheekily at Nick and said, "How's that for a Wedding Crasher?" Nick was not amused.

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I'm back! Yay! Please leave reviews for me, they mean a lot. Now that summer vacation is here, I'll have more free time to write.


	6. This Kiss

I've decided to go a little out of order, so I hope no one minds. This one is going to focus on the post-Passing original survivors.

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Prompt 8. Kiss

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Bill's death had come as a shock. The man valiantly sacrificed himself so that the bridge could be raised. Suddenly, a new group of survivors arrives, and lo and behold, they needed to cross the bridge. Zoey had been adamant about making them walk around. Her words, "If they think that we'll just lower the bridge for them and all will be fine and dandy, they've got another thing coming." The pre-college student always had been more attached to Bill than either Louis or Francis. Not to say that they didn't grow to care for the man, but neither would allow themselves to let Bill's passing affect their minds.

Francis patted Zoey's pink-clad shoulder, "Bill probably wouldn't approve of opening the gate, but we can always raise the bridge again when they go across." He sat down on the gangplank cross-legged, "We're helping people to survive." Zoey sat next to the biker and leaned against him. Louis smiled at them, before catching a glimpse of a passing Boomer, and launched a volley of shots at it, causing it to explode, blood and bile painting the pavement.

Zoey flinched at the explosion. Francis rubbed her shoulder and gave her a kiss on the top of her head, and stood up to go retrieve ammo for his assault rifle before the horde came after the Boomer's bile. The petite girl blinked in confusion, before turning to face Louis. All she got in return was a thumbs up.

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I like this couple, so sue me. I think especially since they've spent a week together at this point, which is more than enough time for affection to manifest, that it is entirely plausible. I personally don't believe Zoey is as interested in Ellis as he is in her, but then that is preference speaking, so…


	7. Rescue Me

Woo, this is good, now that I'm getting back into the swing of things. I'm going to try something different. Remember how I said that Dave and Keith made it to New Orleans, I'm going to have a third set of usable survivors. Keith, Dave, and two OCs Larissa Cohen and Aiden McKenna. This one is going to be about them coming into New Orleans. If you like this one, I may use this combo more often.

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Prompt 14: Rescue

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Keith shouldered his SMG as he entered the Bienville Park, Larissa close behind with her compound bow. He ran a hand through his auburn hair, wishing he hadn't given Ellis his cap. Dave had nearly died because of a Tank way back in Jacksonville. He had trouble running, so Aiden was helping him along ahead. Keith and Larissa found the center of the park, and found the remnants of a CEDA checkpoint. The petite teen glanced at the mechanic, worry evident on her features. "This isn't good."

"I reckon it isn't." Keith motioned for Larissa to follow him, "Let's catch up to Dave and Aiden." They headed toward the exit, picking off stray infected, including a Spitter and a Jockey. Larissa ran ahead through the alley, and tossed a pipe bomb to attract any infected, and darted toward the medical transport unit. She stopped when she spotted the others. Dave had his head in his hands, and Aiden looked nauseous.

Keith caught up and caught sight of the bodies lined up along the wall in piles. "What is this?" He looked closer at the bodies. They showed no signs of infection. "These people were perfectly healthy."

Dave lifted his hands. "No, we got here in time to speak to a CEDA personnel. It turns out; they were suspected to be carriers." The blonde punched his knee. "Not confirmed to be carriers. Suspected." He stood and his eyes were red; he'd been crying. "They killed people who could have been healthy, because they didn't have the time to be certain. They went on rumors. These people could have been saved."

Larissa's hand flew to her mouth in horror. She knelt and placed her barrette at the base of one of the piles, made the sign of the cross, and prayed for them. Keith's features hardened and he walked up into the mobile hospital. Dave and Aiden nodded and gently lifted her off of the ground and the three followed Keith.

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This was fun, because while it rehashed the same world, it utilized different people. Aiden didn't get a lot of screentime, but he will in the future. They were two of four OCs I made, and these two were my favorites. Aiden is 19, and Larissa is 16.


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